Crimson Snow
by Neko-chan1313
Summary: What happens when short meets shorter? One would expect flaring tempers, not love.    Toshiro Hitsugaya-X-OC
1. Chapter 1

The bright light slithered in slightly through the crack in my blinds. Then SHE came in.

"Good morning, Sleepyhead!" Crowed my dear friend, Hana.

"Go away. It's too early to be up..." I tried to cover my face, but she kept pulling the covers back. "You should seriously be slapped for being this energetic in the morning." I grumbled as I sat up. After rubbing my eyes and lightly slapping my cheeks, I proceeded to glare at the bright-eyed blond girl. "Well, what's so important that you have to wake me up at..." I glanced at my clock, and gaped. "8 in the morning?" I screamed the last part.

"Well, the Captain Commander of the 13 Court Guard Squads made an announcement for all of the top 5 students of each 6th year class to come to the courtyard." She looked excited, while I started muttering some very rude comments about morning people and blood and gore. "I get it." I yawned and slipped into my uniform, then quickly brushed my hair.

"Well then, let's go." I really didn't want to know what was going on.

"Hey, Itami, maybe they're going to pick for squad members!" Hana squealed, then pulled out a magazine. "Which squad do you want to be in?" I flipped through the pages with pictures and small descriptions of the captains and lieutenants of the different squads.

"Hey, why is Squad 10 missing?"

"Well, my brother told me that they couldn't get pictures of them. The captain completely refused." I nodded, remembering that her brother helped run the Sereitei Bulleten, which was how she managed to get a copy of the latest issue.

"Well, then probably Squad 3..." I was a bit hesitant, after all, I really couldn't care any less about what squad I was in. As long as it wasn't Squad 11, because they never listened to anyone's story, and fight just for sport.

"So then you must have your eye on Captain Ichimaru or Lieutenant Izuru! Both seem like good choices." I stared at her, completely confused. "As in, like a romance?"

"Nah, I chose the Squad 3 because their flower is the marigold, which symbolizes sadness. I thought that it fit with my name."

"Seriously? I want to be in either 6th, 5th or 13th Squad!" Hana grinned. "Because Captain Kuchiki-"

"Okay, I really don't need to hear your explanation pertaining to love, beauty or whatever." I was a bit irritable because I was woken up too early. "Anyway, we're here." We walked through the tall arches and into the courtyard.

There were 13 of people there, almost all wearing captain haoris and the shortest one at least a half a foot taller than me (9 inches taller, to be more exact. Thats because you're also shorter than Toushiro[who isn't with the other captains] by 4 inches.). "Great. This just about completely crushes my ego." I muttered, and Hana giggled. "Baka!" I hissed at her and lightly smacked her on the back of her head, which was quite hard, considering the fact that she was at least a foot taller than me. Then I noticed that the captains were watching us, so I refrained from anymore abuse, and the other 38 top students walked in behind us.

"Thank you for coming so quickly and so early in the morning." We heard Captain-Commander Yamamoto's loud voice boom around us. "I have gathered you all here to be picked for open spots in the 13 Court Guard Squads by the captains themselves! This is a great honor for all of you, whether or not you are picked, to be acknowledged by the captains of the Squads!" I scanned the captains, immediately recognizing from the pictures the captains of Squads 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12, and 13, but I didn't recognize the orange haired woman, who I would have assumed was the captain of Squad 10, but she wasn't wearing a captain haori, which didn't make sense. I was so intrigued that I completely missed the rest of the Captain-Commander's speech.

"Hey, Itami, pay attention!" I jumped a little when I felt Hana jab me in the side with her elbow. Thank goodness she did, or I would have completely embarrassed myself.

"First, I will introduce the top student out of all of these excellent students: Itami Ichinose, who has the top grades in kido, zanjutsu, hakuda and hohou." I bowed slightly when he finished speaking. Then he continued with the other students. 39 more times.

"Hey, Itami-chan, are you here?" I snapped out of my daze. I just had to stand here and answer when I was asked if I wanted to join a squad, if I was any good at fighting, if I could heal people, if I felt like I had what it takes to be a member of 2nd Company, if I liked drinking, if I was willing to be a human test subject, if I was willing to abandon all self-interest for peace, ect., so I started to daze off, which I was startled out of by the captain not wearing a haori.

"Ah, yes, Captain?" I bowed apologetically.

"Oh, I'm just here as a stand-in for my captain, whose busy. Anyway, I was wondering if you were okay with a short captain." My eyes lit up slightly as I nodded quickly. Then I turned to Hana, who agreed to join 13th Company, and we grinned at each other. I couldn't wait to see how much taller I was than my captain.


	2. Chapter 2

"So, how does it fit?" My new superior, Rangiku Matsumoto, Lieutenant of Squad 10, asked me once she finished helping me put on my shihakusho.

"Great!" I bowed to Lieutenant Matsumoto. "Thank you, Lieutenant Matsumoto!"

"Now we have to make you sexy!" The older woman had a cat-like grin on her face as she practically yanked open the front of my kosode, then swiftly replaced my sash with a pink one.

"Eh, what are you doing?" I shrieked when I looked at my reflection. I looked completely ridiculous. "Lieutenant!" I quickly fixed my kosode and sash. "I'm fine without anything extra, Lieutenant." I managed to gasp out once I regained my breath after screaming. I shuffled through my bag of stuff and pulled out a pink ribbon and tied it in my hair.

"Wow, its so pretty! Who'd you get it from, your boyfriend?" Lieutenant Matsumoto smiled mischievously. "How sweet-" I cut her off.

"Its the last gift I got from my brother before he disappeared."

"How sad." She looked tearful, but I started ranting.

"He just had to leave, didn't he? His stupid pride is obviously more important than his own sister, so nearly getting himself killed in a duel with his new captain was completely unselfish, and much more worthwhile than taking care of your own family!" Matsumoto just blinked.

"Wow, you really don't like him, do you?"

"Of course not! What kind of brother leaves his baby sister for so long! The terrible, cruel slimy kind!" I took a deep breath. "Anyway, shall we go?"

"Sure, Itami-chan." Matsumoto looked completely shocked at my sudden change in personality. "I can't wait for you to meet the captain!"

"Captain! Captain! I want you to meet our new 3rd seat!" Matsumoto was basically dragging me all around the barracks after showing me my room. "Ah, there you are, Captain!" I looked at where Matsumoto was pointing. Sitting at a desk was a boy who looked about my age, with white hair and turquoise eyes.

"So, you are Itami Ichinose. I am Captain Toshiro Hitsugaya. Welcome to Squad 10." He introduced himself.

"It is an honor, Captain Hitsugaya." I bowed. When I straightened out, I suddenly realised something. "You're taller than me." I gaped. What about Lieutenant Matsumoto saying that he was short? I thought. "You lied to me!" I glared at my superior.

"Well, I suppose that he is kind of tall compared to you, but compared to others, he's pretty short." She looked slightly thoughtful.

"MATSUMOTO!" the Captain yelled at his lieutenant.

"Sorry! Sorry!" Matsumoto was chuckling, and I couldn't help but laugh a little. It looked like my life in Squad 10 was going to be a fun one.


	3. Chapter 3

"Hey, Itami-chan!" I looked up from the paperwork that I was helping(aka: doing) Matsumoto with.

"Yes, Lieutenant Matsumoto?" I saw that she was now lying on the couch that was in her office, and that the stack of paperwork that she was supposed to be doing hadn't changed for the last 30 minutes.

"Come on, I told you to call me Rangiku! I mean, since we're friends and all." I just quietly nodded, which she took as a sign to continue. "I think that we should have a party for all of the new recruits!"

"That would be fine, but shouldn't we finish our work first, Matsumoto-san?"

"Well, I'll go talk to the Captain about it really quickly, okay?" I nodded again. Matsumoto ran out of the room shouting for the Captain. I kept working, until five minutes later, I heard the door open and my captain shout.

"MATSUMOTO!" He was fuming. "YOU NEED TO DO YOUR OWN WORK, AND NOT JUST PILE IT ON YOUR SUBORDINATES! THIS DOES NOT COUNT AS HAVING YOUR WORK FINISHED!"

"But Captain, she offered to do it!" Matsumoto defended herself, "Right, Itami-chan?" I nodded.

"I'm fine, Captain. I really did offer to help her with it." I said in a quiet voice. Toshiro sighed.

"Fine, you can have your party, but you have to finish your work." Toshiro looked irritated at the taller woman as he walked out.

"Yay!" she grabbed me in a hug, with me suffocating in her large chest. "We get to have a party!" Finally she let go of me. "Itami-chan, since you've finished your work, how about you go and inform the captains?"

"But-"

"You'll be fine, don't worry. Besides, I'm sure that you'll make a few new friends on the way." I smiled at my friend gratefully.

As I was walking out of the room, I nearly ran into my Academy friend, Hana, now 4th seat of Squad 13. "Hey, Itami-chan!" She grinned. "I saw your captain! Looks like you're still the shortest!"

"Meany!" I laughed at our joke of how no matter where I went, I was always going to be the shortest person. "Hey, Hana-chan, I'm going to inform the captains about a party we're having, and I was wondering if you wanted to come with me."

"A party? Awesome!" She grinned. "I would love to help you!"

"Then let's head to the 11th Squads barracks." I tried to smile, but Hana knew that I really wasn't looking forward to visiting the 11th and 12th Squads. She nodded, and we quickly walked towards my personal hells.

We walked up to the huge doors to the Squad 11's barracks, and were greeted by two men, who were obviously taller than me. "If they make a comment on my height, can I kill them?" I whispered to my blond friend, who giggled, knowing about my sensitivity about my height, and nodded. Seeing this sign of encouragement, I cleared my throat. "Um, excuse me?" This got their attention, and they stared at me.

"What is it, midget?" The taller one, who was bald, sneered at me. I could feel a vein in my head throbbing as I clenched my fists in an act of restraint.

"Come on, Ikkaku." The one with the weird feathers looked at me closely, "You don't have to be so mean. She is kind of pretty."

"What, I'm just being honest, Yumichika." The one apparently named Ikkaku glared at his companion. "She's short, thats all there is to it."

"Uh, Itami-chan? Are you okay?" My friend glanced at me.

"No, I really want to kill the pinball head right now." I gritted my teeth.

"Who're you calling pinball head, Midget?" Now I was mad.

"Why you..." I flash-stepped in front ofhis face, and punched him squarely on the nose.

"You little-"

"DON'T CALL ME LITTLE!" I roared as I knocked him to the ground. I dug my heel into the back of his head. "Call me little, small, shorty, midget, shrimp, or anything along those lines, and I'll beat you till all your bones turn to mush!" I finally finished venting my anger and gave his head one last stomp before stepping off, only to run into something hard. I felt my feet leave the ground as I was lifted off the ground by the back of my uniform.

"Not bad, not bad at all." It was the captain of Squad 11, Kenpachi Zaraki. The last person that I ever wanted to deal with.

"Ah, um, I'm really sorry, Captain Zaraki, for what I've done to your subordinate!" I tried my hardest to bow, which was pretty hard to do, considering the fact that I was half choking on my own clothing. Then I saw a little girl with bright pink hair pop up from his shoulders.

"Yay! Kenny found a new playmate!" She looked ecstatic. Then I remembered what I was here for. Of course, I was now having a hard time breathing, but thankfully, Hana stepped in to save me.

"Excuse me, Captain Zaraki, but I think that you're choking her." He put me down, and my friend ran over to where I was sitting, gasping and coughing. "Also, I am here to inform you that Squad 10 is holding a party for the new recruits, and that they would like to invite you." I sighed slightly. I was hoping that they would refuse, but it was the exact opposite.

"That sound like fun! Lets go, Kenny!" I mentally cursed the pink-haired girl. I really wasn't looking forward to this.


	4. Chapter 4

"Ah, we're finally done!" Hana and I flopped down on the couch in Matsumoto's office. I looked over at the lieutenant of my squad and saw that she hardly did any of her work. I sighed lightly as I went and picked up the rest of the work that had to be done and placed it on the table in front of the couch. "Guess I'll have to finish for her."

-30 minutes later-

Matsumoto's POV:

"Hey, Itami-chan, you've gotten really good at copying my handwriting." I looked over at the ridiculously short and adorable girl on the couch, and saw that she was fast asleep. "You're going to catch a cold, silly!" I smiled at Itami. She really was a sweet girl. "I know what I should do." I walked out of the room to go and find Momo.

Your POV:

I looked between the note and the package the was next to me. Both were from Matsumoto, with the note giving me directions to a spot that I needed to be at during the party, and the package was a beautiful kimono with another small note that told me to wear it for the party. I looked over at the clock and saw that it was almost time for the party, so I quickly ran to my room and changed. I looked at the directions that I was given until I found the indicated sakura tree, which had another note stuck to it, saying that I needed to wait here until a special person arrived. I tried to figure out who, and the first person that came to mind was the captain. Wait, what am I thinking? Why would the captain be this 'special person'? I thought to myself. I easily jumped to the closest branch that could hold my weight and settled myself against the its trunk. I gazed at the full moon. The moon really is pretty. I wish that someone was here to enjoy it with me. I sighed, and once again, the captain came to mind. My face grew warm as I shook my head to clear it, then gazed at the stars.

Toshiro's POV:

"Where are we going, Momo?" I was confused, because I was pretty sure that the party was in the other direction. I noticed that we were in a garden, with a single sakura tree in the middle. I turned around to ask my childhood friend what was going on, but she had disappeared. I sighed inwardly, and walked towards the tall tree, noticing something turquoise within all of the pink flowers. Once I had gotten closer, I saw that it was the 3rd seat of my squad, Itami. I thought of calling out to her, but decided not to, and just looked at her. She really is kind of cute... I thought to myself, then silently cursed myself for thinking that way. She must have noticed me, because she turned my way, and looked me right in the eye, and I watched as her face slowly turned pink.

"Ah, Captain! You were here!"

Your POV:

"Ah, Captain! You were here!" I was completely mortified that I felt my face flush. I quickly jumped down from the tree. Then I remembered the note. No, I thought, It has to be a coincidence! There is no way that the captain would be this 'special person'! I noticed that the captain was blushing slightly, which made me even redder. I was about to excuse myself when a cold wind blew, and I shivered a bit. Then I felt something warm wrapped around my shoulders, and saw that the captain had wrapped his haori around me. "C-captain?"

"I can't have someone who actually works get sick, or else nothing would get done." He looked away, but not before I saw his face redden. I just nodded and enjoyed the warm cloth, which smelled almost like ice and snow. So this is how the captain smells. WAIT! What am I thinking? I blushed about 20 shades of red.

"Um, thank you, Captain. I'm fine-"

"Just keep it, an dreturn it in the morning." I bowed.

"Thank you for your kindness." I said quietly, and quickly walked towards my room, feeling extremely happy and embarrassed.


	5. Chapter 5

"Itami-chan~!" Matsmoto's voice rang through my room. I slowy half-opened one eye.

"Go away, Matsumoto." I grumbled and turned over. Then I remembered the haori. I bolted out of bed. "Shit!" I couldn't figure out where it was.

"Itami-chan? Itami-chan!" Matsumoto yelled. I glared at her. "The Captain's haori is wrapped around you." I immediately flushed a dark red.

"Uh, I can explain-" I was stammering.

"Its fine. I saw everything." She grinned like a lunatic. "I even got some pictures for the Seireitei Bulletin!"

"Matsumoto!" I shouted at her, trying to grab the photos out of her hand.

"Nuh uh uh~!" My friend was laughing. "You have to catch me first!" She flash-stepped away, with me right behind her. Thankfully, I didn't change before I went to sleep(I have a very strict sleeping schedule), and I still had the captain's haori. While I was chasing Matsumoto, I spotted the captain.

"Here's-your-haori-thanks-for-letting-me-borrow-it-see-ya-I-gotta-go!" I quickly said, then went back to chasing Matsumoto. I didn't look back, but if I did, then I would have seen my captain blushing bright red.

When I finally caught up to Matsumoto, I was running on fumes, and practically collapsed on the couch.

"Matsumoto, for being so mean, you have to buy me breakfast. Get me the usual. I'll be here sleeping, just put the food near me." I yawned and shooed my giggling friend away. I quickly fell asleep.

Toshiro's POV:

I walked into Matsumoto's office, expecting to find her sleeping and having Itami doing all of her work, but to my surprise, it was the exact opposite. "Eh? Matsumoto, you're working?" I practically shouted, but my lieutenant quickly shushed me.

"Be quiet, Captain, she's asleep!" She whispered at me. I couldn't say anything, I was so shocked that I just stood there, gaping. Matsumoto noticed. "She deserves a break, don't you think, Captain?" I shrugged, then remembered the papers that I had to give her.

"I need you to do these papers, Matsumoto." I dropped the pile on her desk.

"Captain, I need to go take these papers to Squad 5, so could you stay with Itami-chan? I don't want her to wake up and think that she has to do my work for me." I nodded and sat on one of the chairs in the room, quite glad that there was one that I could sit on and still have my feet reach the ground. Matsumoto smiled broadly and left the room quietly.

"Why do I feel like she's planning something?" I muttered to no one in particular.

"No, Maki, don't go..." I jumped at the sound of Itami's voice, but saw that she was still asleep. She must be dreaming. I thought. At first, her face looked serene and happy, but then started looking pained and upset. "No, he'll kill you! Don't leave me!" She screamed and opened her eyes, tears sliding down her face. She looked up.

"Ah, Captain!" She flushed lightly, looking embarrassed. "I'm sorry for sleeping when I should be working!" she bowed her head frantically.

"It's fine, Matsumoto actually did her work, for once. But," I held up a hand to keep her from interupting, "Are you okay? And who is Maki?" I was feeling pretty angry about this.

"Maki's my brother. Or, should I say, was my brother. I sometimes have this nightmare of when I snuck into the Seireitei when I was 8."

"Wait, how did you sneak into the Seireitei, and when you were 8?" I was shocked. How could anyone sneak in!

"Well, I hardly had any spiritual pressure, and, as you could probably figure out, I was pretty small for my age, so it wasn't very hard, I just had to hide when people walked by. I just really wanted to see my brother, since it had been a while since I last saw him. I was pretty good at sensing his spiritual pressure, so it wasn't to hard for me to find him. He was waiting for his captain, Captain Zaraki. The captain scared me, and I could tell that he could probably kill my brother so I tried to stop him, but he didn't listen." She paused, then continued, "He ended up getting injured pretty badly, and ran away, telling me not to follow him. Of course, I was pretty angry, so I wanted to kill the bastard. Which resulted in this scar." She pushed up the sleeve of her uniform and showed me the jagged scar on her arm. "I wasn't the brightest kid, was I." She laughed forcefully, then yawned. "I really should get to work."

"Its fine. You can have the day off. You've been working practically non-stop for the past week." She bowed.

"Thank you, Captain!" She yawned again.

"But, you really should get more rest. I mean, if you don't get enough sleep, you'll always be short and look like a little kid." I shrugged at her.

"You're one to talk!"

"Yeah, but I'm still taller than you!" She started giggling, and I couldn't help but laugh, too.

Outside of the office, Matsumoto peeked in, snapping pictures every so often. "This will be perfect for my next report!"


	6. Chapter 6

"DAMMIT!" I roared. "I AM SO BORED!" I threw a roll of bandages that were next to my bed at the dead asleep Ikkaku. "Hey, wake up, Pinball-Head." I glared at the baldy who immediately jumped up, yelling how he wasn't bald, and how I should say that to his face. "Fine. Baldy baldy baldy baldy baldy. Happy?" He was starting to get pissed.

"DAMMIT! STOP CALLING ME BALDY!" I looked up as the door open.

"Could you stop yelling so much? You're disturbing the others." Ikkaku's head whipped around and we both sweat dropped when we saw Captain Unohana.

" W-we're sorry." I bowed and pushed my bald friend's head down, too. Once the captain of squad 4 left, I flash-stepped out of the room.

"DAMMIT! I CAN BOW ON MY OWN!" Ikkaku was sprinting after me. I held a finger up to my lips.

"Shut up!" I hissed. "Unless you want Captain Unohana to get mad at you!" As soon as we were outside, I turned around. "Bakudo 63: Sajō Sabaku!" The third seat of squad 11 was completely wrapped in chains.

"Since when were you any good at kido?"

"Since I was in the Academy. I got the top grade in kido. I just have a hard time remembering them." Ikkaku sweat dropped. "Anyway, I'm bored, so I'm going to go find the Ryoka. So don't follow me." I stuck out my tongue and leaped onto the wall, and dashed towards the strong spiritual pressure I felt.

"Wait!" Of course, by now, I was too far away to hear him, but Ikkaku called out a warning to me. "Ichigo is really strong!"

"Found you~!" I trilled in a sing-song voice. The three guys that I was tracking turned around.

"GYAH! 3RD SEAT ICHINOSE! S-S-SO SORRY!" The shortest one kept bowing.

"Eh, Hanatarou-san? What are you doing?" I tilted my head slightly. "Oh well, since you're here, can you help me?" I looked at him as I kicked the ugly guy in the face.

"WHAT THE HELL, YOU BRAT!"

"Bakudo 61: Rikujokoro" Six beams of energy slammed into him. "Wow, it feels so weird using kido again."

"Hey! What are you doing?" The carrot-top yelled at me. "I really don't want to fight you!"

"I was ordered to find and arrest the Ryoka. Orders are orders." I shrugged. "So, let's dance!" I pulled my sword out of my sheathe. "Lash out, Kyofu no Genso!" Once again, I felt black light swallow me. I looked to my side and saw Kyofu(Your nickname for your zanpaku-to). "Kyofu, what are you doing?" I had to crane my neck because of the 2' 1" height difference.

"I can't let you fight while you're hurt, Itami-sama." He smiled at me, and I glared at him, which he returned, red eyes and sea-green eyes challenging each other.

"I don't need any help! And you could at least materialize a bit shorter!"

"Or maybe you could grow taller."

"Who is that?" I whipped my head around and glared at carrot-top.

"Have you never met your zanpaku-to, carrot-top?" I sneered at him.

"My name is Ichigo! And yes, I have met my zanpaku-to, shorty." I felt an elbow rest on my head.

"Don't let him bother you, Itami-sama. Such a lowlife does not deserve to be in your presence."

"Get. Off. Of. My. HEAD! AND GO BACK TO YOUR SWORD FORM!" I yelled at him. Kyofu sighed and disappeared in a flurry of blackness, being replaced by a large scythe. "So annoying. I hate your ability to materialize." I looked at the others, who were gawking. "Anyway, let's get this show on the road." I ran towards the one named Ichigo, who pulled his sword from his back, and swung at him. He easily blocked me.

"Tch!" I kept swinging, and started to feel weak. I forgot that I still hadn't completely recovered, and I felt a little bit of blood seep through my bandages.

"Getsuga Tensho!" A huge blast of energy was flying towards me.

"Zankokuna Kaze!" I slashed at the air in front of me, creating a huge whirlwind to block it. But unlike the last guy, Zankokuna Kaze was completely overpowered, and I was hit head on by the blast. "D-dammit! Why are you Ryoka so strong?" I coughed up some blood.

"Eh? Who did you fight before?" Ichigo looked confused.

"Some big guy." I coughed again.

"Hanataro! Help her!" Hanataro-san ran over and started healing me.

"Uwah, it looks like she was already badly injured when you fought her, Ichigo-san!" Ichigo looked shocked.

"Then why?"

"Why do you care so much? I'm the enemy!" I pushed Hanataro-san away and got up. "I'm your enemy, so you shouldn't protect me! That's not right!"

"I, I just want to protect everyone." I snorted.

"Good luck with that. In battle, sometimes sacrifices are necessary." I sighed. "You aren't the only one who has that wish-"

"ITAMI-CHAN!"

"Matsumoto-san?" I turned towards my busty blonde friend.

"Itami-chan! What happened to you-" Then she noticed the Ryoka. "Why did you go and fight the Ryoka before you finished recovering?"

"I was bored." Everyone sweat dropped. "I'm fine, Matsumoto-san. Go and finish your work before the Captain gets mad."

"No, I am taking you back to Squad 4 right now!" Matsumoto grabbed me and flash-stepped towards the 4th Squad's barracks.

"Uwah, Matsumoto-san, you're such a killjoy!" We both laughed as Matsumoto let me down. "Thanks for the help!" I waved as she flash-stepped away.

"Where have you been, Itami-san?" I turned around and saw the captain of Squad 4.

"Um..."


	7. Chapter 7

"Itami-sama, you really shouldn't have gone out to look for the Ryoka by yourself."

"Shut up, Kyofu, I don't need to be lectured by you right now. Besides, it was a pretty interesting experience. That Ichigo guy is pretty weird." I chuckled lightly.

"Hey, Itami-chan, I brought you some snacks!" I looked up from the book I was reading. "They're mitarashi dango dumplings! I also brought some of that tea you like." I smiled at her. "Oh, hi, Kyofu no Genso." She waved at my zanpaku-to.

"Hello, Hana-sama. It is an honor to see you again." He bowed.

"Aw, cut the crap, Kyofu. We all know that you're an immature jerk. You can't trick us." I snorted, then turned to my blonde friend. "Thank you so much for the gift, Hana."

"No problem. Anyway, I need to get back to work. I'll try to visit you later!" She trotted out of the room.

"Ah, Hana is so sweet." I smiled as I got a whiff of the tea that Kyofu was brewing. "That smells good, Kyofu." He just bowed. I saw the door open again.

"I heard that you left to look for the Ryoka before you recovered, Itami." I froze.

"C-captain! What a surprise to see you!" I stammered, feeling a my cheeks redden slightly. Kyofu chuckled, and I sent a murderous look at him. "Anyway, what can I do for yo-"

"Who is he?" My captain pointed at my zanpaku-to.

"Oh, that's Kyofu no Genso, my zanpaku-to." I explained as he handed me a cup of tea. "You want some?" He shook his head. "Anyway, what brings you here, Captain?"

"Nothing really, just checking up to make sure you didn't suddenly die or anything." The short- I mean, 'fun-sized' captain turned his head slightly, but not before I saw his face flush slightly.

"Nope, I'm still alive and kickin'!" I grinned. "But I really do hope that I will be let out soon. I'm super bored!" Now it was my captain's turned to smile.

"Well, you just concentrate on getting better. Then you can get out sooner."

"Yes, Captain Hitsugaya!" I grinned broadly, and we both laughed.

"Well, I have to get going. Try not to cause anymore trouble!"

"Yes! I'm allowed outside!" I stretched out in the bright sun. I grinned. "Now all I have to do is find someone to keep me company!" I looked around me, trying to find someone that I recognized.

"Ah, Hinamori-san!" I waved at 5th Company's Lieutenant.

"Itami-san, I heard that you were confined to your room!" I pouted.

"Who told you that?"

"Shiro-chan told me."

"Who's Shiro-chan?" I snorted at the sound of it.

"That's what I would call Toshiro when we were kids." Hinamori smiled. I felt jealous of her.

"You seem really close to the captain." I sighed enviously.

"No! I mean, we're childhood friends, but he's more like a brother to me!" She put her hand on my shoulder. "I'm going to do everything in my power to get you and Shiro-chan together!"

"EH?"

~~~~~~~(Time skip to when Toshiro finds Central 46 dead)~~~~~~

"C-captain, what happened here?" I stood slightly behind Toshiro. "They're all dead." I felt faint. Who could have done this? I stumbled slightly. "But, why?" The world as I knew it was coming to an end.

"They've been murdered!" I trembled at the fury in his voice. I turned to look around, and saw the last person that I expected to see.

"Lieutenant Kira!" I shouted at the blond lieutenant. "Don't tell me that you did this..." I felt my legs give, and fell to my knees. "But you were such a nice person, always so nice to me and Hinamori-san! Why would you do this?" As tears pricked my eyes, I saw him run out of the room, with my captain following.

As soon as I was able to, I got up, and left just in time to see Hinamori-san following Captain Ichimaru. I followed them, making sure that I wasn't seen, then saw the two of them enter a building. Peeking in, I saw Hinamori-san hugging Captain Aizen. Wasn't Captain Aizen dead? I saw him stab Hinamori-san.

"What are you-" I was silenced by a hand covering my mouth.

"Hey, Captain Aizen! Ah found someone eavesdropping!" It was Captain Ichimaru.

"Kill her." This couldn't be Captain Aizen. Not the Captain Aizen who was always so kind and helpful. Unless it was all an act. I never really did like Captain Aizen. He was too nice, too perfect. I thought that it was all an act. And I was right. Mustering all of the strength I had, I grabbed the hand on my mouth and yanked, trying to flip him.

"Woah!" I heard Captain Ichimaru laugh as I threw him off. I unsheathed my sword and turned to Captain Aizen.

"How could you?" I hissed at the brown haired man. "How could you? Hinamori-san thought of you as a god, and you just trample all over that, as if her feelings were nothing more than ants." I pointed my katana towards the ground. "Lash out, Kyofu no Genso!" My sword was replaced by a large scythe. "What you did was despicable, and now you will pay for what you've done." My head was throbbing slightly. A memory flashed.

110 Years ago

"Why are all of these people lying in red water?" a young me looked up at someone who resembled Captain Aizen. I felt a searing pain, and saw that the me I was watching had gotten stabbed. Then, slowly, I saw white liquid seep from her mouth. Soon, the stuff completely engulfed her face, and formed a Hollow mask.

"What the..." I just stood there, watching as the girl's body transformed into a fairy-like Hollow.

~Present~

I was in intense pain. Let me out! A voice that sounded like mine underwater hissed at me. I was transported to my inner world. I gazed out at the barren, windy plains that made my inner world. I felt an odd Spiritual Pressure behind me, and I whirled around, coming face to face with a girl who looked exactly like me, except practically everything about her was white.

"Who are you?" I snarled at her. "And where's Kyofu?"

"Eh? I'm right here, baka!" The person crowed. She pulled out a white sword. "See?" I was shocked at the sight of a pure white copy of my sword.

"Kyofu no Genso and I are one with you. While life reigns, flesh covers bones. But, when death is in power, the bones become exposed. So, obviously, I, death, have become stronger than Kyofu, life. And since you've been using me so much, I can easily take ov-" I stabbed her in the gut.

"Shut up." I hissed as I yanked out my sword. "You will never take me over. Never."

I sighed in relief as I felt the pain leave my body. I slowly opened my eyes to the sight in front of me, finally remembering all of the horrors that I had witnessed that night over 100 years ago. The night that I had been taken away from the Soul Society, because there was an order to kill all of the people who had been hollowfied.

"You." I said that one syllable with all of the hatred and loathing that came from him injuring Hinamori-san and from what he had done all of those years ago. "You ruined my life, and the lives of the people who you used for your experiments." I raised my scythe. "Fujin no Kuro Shokan[1]." A storm stirred around us. "Grovel before the god of wind-"

"Skewer that punk, Shinso." The wind around us dissipated as I collapsed to the ground.

"Damn you..." I coughed, holding my hand to the stab wound that was just inflicted. Everything started going black. The last thing that I heard was the enraged voice of my captain.

"I'm so sorry, Captain." I murmured before I passed out.

[1]Wind God's Black Redemption


	8. Chapter 8

I was in pain, but I knew that meant that I was still alive. I wanted to open my eyes, and I wanted to scream, but I couldn't move. Something wasn't right. Someone was sobbing. It sounded like Matsumoto-san. And I heard Lieutenant Ise trying to comfort her. I also felt the presence of Captain Hitsugaya. Why is Matsumoto-san crying? I'm not dead, so what's the big deal? Maybe Hinamori-san died. It would have been better if I had died instead. I was jolted out of my thoughts when I heard a huge sob.

"But she can't be! Itami-chan would never die like that! There has to be a mistake!" Matsumoto-san continued crying. For a couple more minutes, all that I could hear were the heaving sobs of my friend.

"Matsumoto, that's enough!" It was the captain this time. "There's absolutely no trace of her Spiritual Pressure, and all of her vitals have stopped, so the only conclusion that we can come to is that she's dead!" He snapped at his lieutenant.

"Rangiku, I think that you should go get some rest." I could hear Lieutenant Ise escorting Matsumoto-san out of the room, and quietly closing the door. Then I heard Captain Hitsugaya walk closer.

"Why did you do something so reckless, idiot. You charged in without a plan, and now look at what's happened. Your dead." He choked on a sob, trying to keep his composure, but failed, and ended up kneeling next to my bed, crying softly with his head in his arms.

After a while, my captain stopped crying, so I assumed he was asleep. This soothed me a little, knowing that he stopped crying, and the pain eased a little, and I was able to crack open my eyes. I heard the machine that was connected to me start quietly beeping to represent my heartbeat. I finally managed to open my eyes all the way, and sat up slightly. I looked down and saw my captain, his tear streaked face showing signs of sadness and despair. I smiled slightly at the side that I got to see for the first time ever. I gently shook him to wake him up. Captain Hitsugaya's eyes snapped open as he stared into mine.

"Hello, Captain." I said quietly, and smiled. Then footsteps quickly came towards my room as Matsumoto-san burst in.

"Itami-chan!" She ran over and squeezed me tightly, ignoring my sounds of pain. "I knew it! I knew that you wouldn't die on me!" I looked up as best as I could, and saw the tears in her eyes.

"Nani?" I was confused. I didn't understand why they thought that I had died.

"Your Spiritual Pressure completely disappeared, and your vitals stopped, so everyone thought that you were dead." My captain's voice wavered almost unnoticeable.

"That's happened before." I shrugged. "It seems to happen when I almost die. Like when I did that mission in the Academy, the one with the fake Hollows, and real ones attacked. I suppose that my body just drains my Spiritual Pressure to heal me."

"Excuse me, but I need to speak to Itami-san alone." I heard Captain Unohana say to Matsumoto-san and Captain Hitsugaya. I felt Matsumoto-san nodded, and imagined that the captain did as well. She let go of me, and waved, promising to visit again soon.

"Yes, Captain Unohana?" I looked at her quizzically as she opened a scroll.

"By the order of Captain-Commander Yamamoto, 3rd Seat Itami Ichinose is hereby promoted to the position of Captain of Squad 5." She rolled the paper back up. "Congratulations, Itami-san. Here is the haori." She held out a package, which I took and opened. "As soon as you are able to, Captain-Commander Yamamoto would like you to go and meet your new Squad. Also, we have made preparations to transport your belongings to the 5th Squad barracks and for your transfer to Squad 5." I just nodded, unable to say anything. Then I came back to my senses.

"But, Captain Unohana, am I really qualified for this position?"

"Of course. After all, you have mastered Bankai, and Captain Kyoraku judged that you have probably had more experience with yours than Lieutenant Abarai. Also, since Squad 5's Lieutenant is currently out of commission, the squad desperately needs a leader, and you have shown plenty of leadership skills." The captain of Squad 4 smiled gently at me. I suggest that you accept the position. You might never get this chance again, Itami-san."

"H-hai, Captain Unohana. Domo arigatogozaimashita." I shivered at the now semi-threatening smile.

"Good, I will inform the Captain-Commander of your decision immediately." She left the room.

I sighed. "Well, I don't have anything to lose, so I may as well just go meet my new comrades." I pulled on my Shihakusho and grabbed the haori, marveling at the beautiful light green lining. "Heh, it's kind of like Captain Hitsugaya's haori." I blushed deep red at the memory. "No! I must appear calm and collected, not like a little girl with a crush!" I shook my head violently as I slipped the haori on and walked out of the room.

The walk to the 5th Squad barracks wasn't very far, and before I knew it, I was standing before the gates to the 5th Squad. I walked over to the two Soul Reapers who were guarding the entrance.

"Excuse me, but can I please enter? I wanted to introduce myself to the rest of my squad." I had to crane my neck.

"H-hai, Captain." One of them bowed.

"Hey, how do we know that you're not lying?" The other one was suspicious. I just smiled slightly.

"I guess that Squad 5 really does deserve it's reputation of training the strongest Soul Reapers." I turned to the one who was going to let me in. "The fact that you are so trusting can be a good quality, but in matters like these, it is best to be at least a little suspicious. After all, I could have been an enemy." I turned back to the one who questioned me. "But, I really am the new captain. I believe that there were preparations for my transfer to Squad 5."

"Then you must be Captain Ichinose! Gomen'nasai, I didn't expect you to come back so soon. After all, we heard that you were recuperating."

"Its okay, don't worry about it." I smiled as they let me in. "Both of you have a lot of potential, and I can't wait to work with you." I bowed and murmured my thanks. I was already looking forward to my position as Captain of Squad 5.


End file.
